The Jump Street Drive Music Festival is held on the weekend of the fourth Saturday in July. The two-day event honors Lenoir’s own Jump Street Drive Band, and is a celebration of Blues, Jazz, R&B, and Soul music.
Come enjoy free concerts by artists performing Blues, Jazz, R&B, and Soul music.
In 2022, Mayor Joe Gibbons proclaimed that every fourth Saturday in July will be Jump Street Drive Band Day at the Martin Luther King Jr. Center. The full resolution is below.
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Date
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Schedule
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Location
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Friday, July 26, 2024
Friday evening is a meet and greet event. Bring your own food and drinks and enjoy a night of music and honors. in the Samuel T. Sturgis Gym. |
6:00 pm until
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Martin Luther King Jr. Center
Samuel T. Sturgis Gym 313 Greenhaven Dr NW Lenoir, NC 28645 |
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Saturday, July 27, 2023
Saturday evening outdoor concert.Bring your own chairs and umbrellas!In case of rain, the concert will be moved inside. |
6:00 pm until
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Martin Luther King Jr. Center
Outside Ball Field 313 Greenhaven Dr NW Lenoir, NC 28645 |
JUMP STREET DRIVE BAND DAY
WHEREAS, the Tribe of Judah was the first all-black musical group to perform at Lenoir High School in 1967, three years after the school integrated; and
WHEREAS, in 1974, Howard Colbert, Marvin Horton, Douglas Lipford, and Jimmy Perkins, who were past members of the Tribe of Judah, joined Stacy Bowers, Claude Ferguson, and Benny Jones to form a new band; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Ferguson named the new group the Jump Street Drive Band, and all members of the band were from Lenoir; and
WHEREAS, the group performed in Lenoir and around the state from 1974 to 1981; and
WHEREAS, Jump Street Drive Band performed at J.E. Broyhill Park on many Sundays during their career to entertain local residents and supporters, and the band recorded their first demo tape in a studio in Taylorsville; and
WHEREAS, Jump Street Drive Band also performed at the Viewmont Community Center (later renamed to the Martin Luther King Jr. Center), Mulberry Recreation Center, The Harpers Witherspoon American Legion Post in the West End neighborhood, Winston-Salem State University, and North Carolina A&T State University, and
WHEREAS, Jump Street Drive Band opened for The Manhattans, a popular R&B vocal group whose songs “Kiss and Say Goodbye” recorded in 1976 and the 1980’s number “Shining Star” both sold millions of copies, and
WHEREAS, Jump Street Drive Band inspired many members of Lenoir’s black community during their career by representing Lenoir, playing songs that were important to the black community, and providing free local entertainment to residents;
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, I, Mayor Joseph L. Gibbons, on behalf of the City of Lenoir City Council, proclaim that every fourth Saturday in July will be Jump Street Drive Band Day at the Martin Luther King Jr. Center in Lenoir, North Carolina.
This the 23rd day of July 2022.
Joseph L. Gibbons, Mayor
Joseph L. Gibbons, Mayor